The Mistaken Romance
by Annabeth Zatsune
Summary: When Hawkeye gets a letter signed 'Jack,' she replies. When the two meet, neither can speak. Jack and Hawkeye... are both girls.
1. Chapter 1

**This is a romance, yes. But may I say it wasn't my idea! All credit goes to an anonymous person who I refuse to name!**

It all started with the letter. That's what Hawkeye thought as she looked at the person in front of her. The letter. The single sheet of paper that started it all.

Mustang had thrown the blank envelope onto her desk and told her to take care of it. Unsure of what to do, Hawkeye had read the letter. It was signed 'Jack,' and it spoke of how lonely he was. There was no one it was addressed to.

When Hawkeye realized she had read someone's personal letter, she wrote back apologizing. And then, she got a reply. 'Hawkeye, you say you're a military person, but you don't sound it at all. And don't apologize for my stupid letter. It wasn't to anyone or anything. It was just to ease my loneliness.' he'd written.

That started a string of letters back and forth. The two wrote to and fro, becoming friends although they'd never met. And eventually, Jack set up a rendezvous. She'd readily agreed, and they set the time and place.

That evening, Hawkeye had run out of the office to the meeting spot.

Before she entered the plaza, she saw someone who resembled Edward Elric. Only Edward had two auto-mail limbs and he didn't wear mini-skirts. He also normally wore his long hair in a braid instead of leaving it down. The girl turned to look at Hawkeye. "Hello. Am I in your way?" she asked.

"No, I'm waiting for someone." Hawkeye answered, coming to stand by the girl.

"Yeah, me too. I'm wondering what he'll be like. Is really as good as I've made him out to be? Or has he been stringing me along?" The girl shrugged. "I suppose if he was only feeding me lies, I could slug him real hard. I'm good at that."

Hawkeye chuckled. "You're a brave kid, to say things like that, and come even though he may be lying." she said.

"Well, he claims to be a soldier. A sniper, even. I was once in the army. But before he died, my dad pulled me out. Unfortunately, it was after Ishval I was pulled out. I was seventeen at the time, and I didn't think being a sniper would be bad. You only had one target, I thought. I was so wrong."

"You were in Ishval?" Hawkeye gasped.

"Yes. I'm glad Father pulled me out. I never want to live that again. It was awful."

Hawkeye nodded. "The man I'm waiting for says he used to be in the military, but he was pulled out on his father's wishes. I wrote him that I wished the same could be said for me."

The girl took a sharp breath. "This guy you're waiting for? Is his name Jack, by any chance?" she asked.

"Yes. Are you waiting for him too?"

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Hawkeye. I'm Jackie Jackson, Jack for short." the girl said, extending her hand. "It's a little shocking we didn't recognize each other by the description of our letters to each other."


	2. Chapter 2

Riza reflected on that day as she sat in the office. She didn't look up when someone entered, even though everyone else did. The person walked past and up to Mustang's desk. She heard paper being passed from hand to hand. "So, you were in the military before, but got pulled out? Lieutenant Colonel Jackie Jackson is it?" he droned.

Riza's head shot up at the name. Jackie was standing before Mustang in full uniform. "Yessir. I'm to work under your command from now on." She answered.

"Whatever." Mustang looked past Jackie to Riza. "Hawk-eye? You look a little shocked."

Jackie spun around. "Hawk-eye!"

"Jackie? What're you doing here?"

"Hawk-eye? You know this kid?" asked Havoc.

"Yes. We're pen-pals. Sort of." Riza replied.

"And don't call me a kid! I'm twenty-nine and I served in the Ishvalan War!" Jackie snapped.

"So what were you known as?" asked Breda.

"The Weeping Rifle."

Everyone looked at her. The Weeping Rifle was a sniper almost as good as Riza. Supposedly, this gunner shed a tear for every Ishvalan, and half-way through the battle, retired from the military. But nobody could've expected it to be Jackie, least of all Riza.


	3. Chapter 3

Riza gaped at Jackie. "You rejoined!" she finally gasped.

"Yeah…" Jackie was staring at Riza too.

"Dang, Hawkeye, you know this pretty young lady?" Havoc teased, sidling up to Jackie.

"Mitts off." Jackie said sternly, causing Hawkeye to chuckle.

"So Jackie, if we're going to be working together, why don't we have lunch together?" Riza suggested. Jackie nodded.

At lunch, Riza and Jackie were relatively quiet. Finally, Riza asked a question. "Why did you come back?" she asked.

"Well…" Jackie pushed her food away. "I guess even though I found out you were a girl, I still found I liked you enough to want to be close to you. But I didn't know you worked under Mustang! I'd wanted to work under him or Hughes, but Hughes is apparently dead. You see, I met the two during the war. I thought it'd be best to work with a familiar face."

Riza hesitated. What Jackie had just said was true for her too. She'd wanted to go to Jackie, to make friends. To become best friends, no better than friends. They were perfect for each other. "Well, I'm not doing anything after work today. I can come over to your place." she suggested.

"Sounds great!" Jackie said, eyes sparkling.

At the end of the day, Jackie led Riza to her house. It was a small modest place at the edge of town. "It's pretty." Riza complimented.

"Thanks. Hey, I want to show you something!" Jackie took Riza's hand and led her through the house. She pulled Riza out the back door and through a small gate. Riza gasped. "One for every person I've shot." Jackie said solemnly.

Riza wandered the rows of brightly colored roses. They were in colors she'd never seen roses come in before. "These aren't roses, are they?"

"No, they are. Ishvalans were different from us, so using my Alchemy, I alter the chemicals that make them red. That way, I'm honoring their difference from us. I hope that they see me, and thank me for my secret garden." Jackie said quietly.

"You're an Alchemist?" Riza asked.

"Only a beginner. I only ever really worked with changing the color of things."

Riza stood up and walked back to Jackie. Jackie looked up at her. "Do you like it?" she asked timidly.

"Yes. And I admire your remorse." Riza said leaning in and kissing Jackie.


	4. Chapter 4

That kiss was the start of a bigger relationship. The two ate lunch together every day after. They went over to each other's homes often. No one knew about their relationship until Riza invited Jackie over for the night.

Hearing a knock on the door, she called out. "Come on in! I'll have dinner ready in a minute!"

"I wasn't aware I had an invitation to dinner." Riza stood bolt upright.

"Colonel!"

"So, who's the lucky guy?" Mustang asked curiously, eyes narrowed.

"Umm…"

Another knock sounded at the door. Mustang went to answer it. "Lieutenant Jackson." he sounded surprised.

"Oh? Riza, is it a bad time?" Jackie asked softly.

"No." Mustang dragged Jackie into the apartment. "Now I expect answers from you two. Just how deep is your relationship?" he growled.

"We're friends." Jackie answered. Riza nodded. It was true, yet vague.

"I'm aware of that!" the colonel snapped. "I meant how good of friends!"

"Well… We're…" Riza started.

"We're kinda… Well…" Jackie stammered.

"I see." Mustang said. "I'll be going then."

The two flinched as he slammed the door angrily.

"Well… Riza… I… wanted to…"

"Go ahead."

Blushing, Jackie thrust something at Riza. "I'm only good at crying, it seems."

Riza took the small red box and opened it. She gasped at the small ring inside. "Jackie…"

"If you don't want to-!"

Riza threw her arms around Jackie. "Yes. I want to."


End file.
